Free Hold Me Closer (Sea Island Brides Book 1) by Georgia Kelly Page B

disappearing into the
hallway.
    Frustrated
and aroused, Hudson leaned back against the edge of his desk. He was
sure that she wanted him, but something was holding her back. Every
time he got close to her, she threw up another wall. Good thing he
wasn’t the type to shy away from a challenge.
    Before
this acquisition went through, he was determined to watch all her
walls come tumbling down.
     

     
    Annabelle
couldn’t get out of Hudson’s office fast enough.
    As
soon as she was alone in her tabby cottage, she flopped onto the
couch and let out a deep sigh. She was supposed to despise him, but
every time she got close to Hudson Montgomery, she wanted to pull him
down on top of her, to feel the weight of his body moving over hers.
    At
the same time, she wanted to punch him in the face. It was like being
on an emotional roller-coaster ride that never ended.
    Anger.
Desire. Passion. Outrage. All of the above.
    Before
she could work through her feelings, the cell phone on her bedside
table began to chirp. Annabelle reached for it, her shoulders tensing
as she read the caller ID. Julia. Perfect timing. Now she could add
guilt and worry to her list of emotions this morning.
    How
was she going to explain this to Julia? In her original plan, Julia
wasn’t supposed to find out about any of this until after
Annabelle’s blackmail plan had worked. She figured the joy of
her success would keep her cousin from spending too much time getting
mad at her for doing something so stupid and reckless.
    Of
course, the original plan was toast. And Hudson was right. Everyone
she’d ever known would learn of her engagement once the papers
got hold of the news.
    With
a deep sigh, she accepted the call and said hello.
    “Annabelle?
Where are you, sweetie? I just got back to Atlanta, and I stopped by
your apartment to see you, but I couldn’t get in. Someone
famous must be moving into your building or something. The press was
everywhere. You won’t believe how huge I’ve gotten!”
Without even waiting to hear Annabelle’s response, Julia
chattered away happily. “I had an awesome time with the girls
up in the mountains. It rained half the time, but we didn’t
mind. So, how are you? Do you want to come over this afternoon?”
    By
the time Julia took a breath, Annabelle’s heart was beating so
fast she was scared to open her mouth. How many times had she broken
upsetting news to Julia about some stupid mistake or a
plan-gone-wrong? More than she cared to think about. And none so
potentially upsetting as this.
    “Annabelle?
Are you there, hon?”
    “I’m
here, Jules.” Her voice came out all wobbly, and she paused to
take another breath.
    “Are
you okay? What’s happened?” Annabelle recognized her
cousin’s worried tone all too well.
    “I’m
fine. I’m not hurt or in any real trouble, but there’s
something important I need to tell you. I did something completely
crazy.”
    Julia
giggled, the relief in her voice obvious. “Really? There’s
something I’ve never heard before.”
    “Okay,
before I tell you, please promise me you won’t do something
major like go into early labor.”
    “Gosh,
Annabelle. What in the world did you do? Where are you? Why don’t
you just come over so we can talk about this in person?”
    “I
can’t come over, Jules. I’m not in Atlanta. I’m on
Sea Island.”
    There
was total silence on the line, and Annabelle bit her lip. When Julia
finally asked her to continue, the floodgates opened and Annabelle
confessed everything, down to the very last detail, Hudson’s
number one rule be damned.
    “I
know I shouldn’t have gotten involved, but I couldn’t
bear to sit back and watch this snobby family treat you like a liar
and a nobody.”
    “Oh,
Annabelle,” Julia said. “You know I don’t need them
to tell me I’m not a liar.”
    “I
know,” she said. “But that doesn’t make it right.
So you aren’t mad at me?”
    “I
probably should be, but I know that you were acting out of